Courses, resourses and useful information

“I find that I learn most from the group discussions. I have picked up hints and tips not only from the course tutors and the handouts we are given, but from discussions with the other parents on the course. It’s such a positive and caring environment, everyone supports each other and there is no judgement at all.”

“The most important thing I've learned in recent years is that the way I think and act in work and business inherently leads to stress which does have an effect on my mental health. There, I said it, I do not have perfect mental health (I am not sure anyone really does).”

It is true that all children have their moments of being challenging - episodes like having a tantrum about bed time, or refusing to do maths homework spring to mind! However, there is a difference between the usual tantrums associated with children growing up and learning about rules and boundaries, and what is classed as ‘challenging behaviour’.

It can be hard to know what to say or do when a young person you're working with is feeling very anxious, and even more challenging if they have a panic attack. So, here is our collection of easy ways to help.

“At our school, where parenting courses have historically not worked, BrightSparks have come in and delivered behaviour and child development training that is well structured, research-led and accessible to all.”

This week, we spoke to Steph, a Lead Teaching Assistant from London: "The best thing about my role? Seeing our students learn life skills, and the pure joy they experience when they have the light bulb moment."

"So often within children and young people's services, input is short lived. This is in massive contrast to the mentoring where I can meet with a young person every week for a year - allowing real connections to form." - This week, we had a chat with Joy, learning about her experiences working with children and young people as a volunteer Mentor.

"There's always something new to learn, and every child, family and situation is different, so every day is different and brings a new challenge. I love knowing a child is safer or happier because of my work."

“I’ve found the courses really, really good. It’s been a great first step back into the world of learning and education because it’s friendly, informal, and a lot of people that have come on the Essential Skills for Working with Children and Young People course have similar experiences to me."

This contract will enable KIDS to deliver a wide range of regional support to disabled children, young people and their families, enriching their lives while giving parents much-needed respite from their caring responsibilities.

BrightSparks and Social Vision have come together to create Tribe York, a new social enterprise providing space and support for start up businesses, entrepreneurs and innovators. Members of Tribe are supported by over 100 local business people, who provide two hours per month of support, mentoring and masterclasses, covering a range of topics from accountancy and tax, through to user engagement and marketing.

In celebration of everything the National Health Service has done for us, they are asking us to host a tea party to raise money for the fantastic charities that help the NHS provide the best service possible.

BrightSparks is proud to announce that it is teaming up with local social entrepreneur Vinnie Whitehead to take over the management and running of the Zoo Skatepark which is located on Foss Island in York.

I’ve tried to avoid the standard observations that seem to appear in most entrepreneurial blog articles I read these days like “build a great team” or “delegate more”. That’s kind of the 101 stuff in my opinion. Instead, my observations of what work really do centre around this concept of being a design thinker and shaping a social purpose company around that type of philosophy.

Thank you to Postcode Community Trust for funding BrightSparks to develop a toolkit of resources and information for school staff and parents about supporting children and young people to improve their emotional resilience.

Social Value UK work with members like BrightSparks to increase the accounting, measuring and maximising of social value from the perspective of those affected by an organisation’s activities, through their Principles of Social Value.

Research and Social Impact Projects

With growing social awareness among consumers and a greater sense of accountability among businesses and not-for-profit's, we know that proving the social impact of your work is a vital part of demonstrating the credibility of your organisation and the services you provide.

BrightSparks offers a range of services including research, evaluation, and social impact auditing, to help you prove, improve and present the social impact that your organisation produces. We have worked with corporate CSR teams, social enterprises and charity sector organisations on proving their social impact, particularly where funders stipulate the requirement for an independent assessment.

Check out some of our projects...

BrightSparks has been commissioned by a social enterprise organisation, Spark:York, to conduct a longitudinal evaluation of an innovative multi-million pound social enterprise hub in the centre of York.

This project represents an innovative collaboration between voluntary, statutory and Higher Education partners, leading to a greater understanding of music, and its value as a resource and intervention for CSPs in Lincolnshire.

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BrightSparks is a trading name of BrightSparks Business Development Services CIC which is a registered Community Interest Company (Company No 10479737). Some of the services on this website may be provided by our sister company, Bright Bid Ltd.